Apple MR headset to use 96W charger and two processors, no metaverse

Apple’s mixed reality or MR headset will be charged with a 96-watt charger, similar to the ones already shipping on the higher-tiered 14-inch MacBook Pros, according to renowned analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The new headset requires significantly more power than Apple’s mobile products like the iPhone and iPad, the latter of which all ship with a 20-watt charging brick. He also corroborated his earlier reports of the headset using two processors, one powerful enough to match the M1 in performance, and a less powerful one for its sensors, such as hand tracking. They will use the 4nm and 5nm manufacturing process, although he did not specify which would be used for which processor.

The main selling points will be significant AR innovations, seamless switching between AR and VR, playing well with the rest of the Apple ecosystem, and 2nd gen products with lower prices.

A Q&A session from Bloomberg tech reporter Mark Gurman’s newsletter revealed that he would be shocked to hear Apple even mention the metaverse, with higher-ups pushing for the headset to be used for short bursts of consumption. This strategy is a stark contrast to Meta Platforms’ (formerly Facebook) plans for a metaverse, a virtual world where users would do everything from working, playing games, and getting fit, using their to-be-announced Meta headsets.

Both Mark and Ming-Chi agree that the headset could be unveiled sometime in 2022, with a gap till the headset is on sale, to allow developers to make apps for it, similar to how the Apple Watch was first unveiled in September 2014, and later going on sale on April 2015.

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